


A Hole in The Wall

by VioletTeaTime



Category: Batman - All Media Types, Justice League - All Media Types, The Flash - All Media Types
Genre: Age Difference, Author Knows Very Little About Americans, Barry Allen Needs a Hug, Barry is mid twenties, Batman Played by Ben Affleck, Bruce Wayne is a Good Person, Bruce is late thirties, Flash Played by Ezra Miller, M/M, Poor Barry Allen, Poverty, actually, i know nothing about the american medical system except for the fact its expensive
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-02-14
Updated: 2020-02-14
Packaged: 2021-02-28 03:40:36
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 2,046
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/22687126
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/VioletTeaTime/pseuds/VioletTeaTime
Summary: Bruce never put much thought into Barry's financial situation, until he had to.
Relationships: Barry Allen/Bruce Wayne
Comments: 4
Kudos: 173





	A Hole in The Wall

**Author's Note:**

> heya! god i havent written for this fandom in like two years and three pen names. i rewatched Justice League (2017) again and like,, they directly speak about Barry being a squatter at one point? its totally overlooked?  
> also i don't read comics so idk,,, how canon,, but im trying

Bruce had one policy that he genuinely tried to live by, keep your nose out of other people's business. His hero counterparts had their lives, he had his. Yes, they overlapped and intertwined, especially as they now met up rather often, but he wanted to keep a certain balance between his cowled persona, and his life outside of the Bat. However, being the World's Greatest Detective meant that he couldn't ignore much, especially when it was right out in the open.

-

Bruce watched as Barry flopped dramatically on one of the couches, its plush form swallowing his thin body. Diana smiled from her seat, already picking away at the bowl of popcorn she held. Arthur had found his seat on the floor, leaning up against one of the couches, stretching his legs in front of him. Victor sat in a recliner, splayed out and comfortable, the way a teenage boy deserves to be.

Bruce carried a platter into the room, an assortment of everything from calamari to Girl Guide's cookies an option. Barry moved from his sprawl, sitting upright to let Bruce sit beside him. The older man took the opportunity, setting the tray on the table in front of him. Immediately Barry dug into the tray, and Bruce felt a swell in his chest.

"So... Star Wars or The Princess Bride?" Diana held the remote far away from her, pointed towards the TV as though she didn't know how to use it. 

"Princess Bride!"

"Man, Star Wars! Leia's hot. Ow, shit, stop kicking my head!" Arthur glanced over at the couch where Barry and Bruce sat, and Bruce looked to Barry to make the call. With his mouth full, the speedster responded, "Princess Bride." Bruce merely nodded to Diana.

The lights came down as the movie started, and Bruce felt weight on his left side. Barry was leaning on him, a dopey look on his face. 

"Tired?" Bruce's voice came out so quiet it surprised even him. Barry nodded against his shoulder. The Bat sighed softly, and gently took the younger by his shoulders. He placed Barry's head in his lap, and gently stroked his hair. 

"Sleep."

And so he did. Barry slept through the film, as well as the three episodes of Seinfeld that Bruce was awake for, before he nodded off, his hands still carded through Flash's hair. Bruce, ever the early riser, woke up before Barry did, their position having shifted during the night to be closer together. Someone had thrown a blanket over their intertwined legs. Bruce stretched, his spine cracking as it realigned. Beside him, the speedster shifted slightly, a string of incoherent words flooding from his mouth. 

Within a few minutes, Bruce felt the squeeze of Barry's hand on his arm, the younger man beginning to wake up. Bruce smiled as he yawned, a big, ugly thing, before curling back against him.

"God, I haven't slept that well in years." Barry's voice was crackly and squeaky after sleep, one of Bruce's favourite things about him. 

"You must have a pretty shitty bed at home if my couch is better." Bruce stroked his hand lazily over Barry's back, feeling the swell of his breathing.

"Yeah, you could say that."

"My bed always has room for two." Bruce smiled as Barry nuzzled into his neck. 

"Please, you two, shut the fuck up." Arthur's voice rang out, ruining the moment. Bruce couldn't even pretend to be pissy, Barry was laughing too hard.

-

Training was harder now that he was with Barry, the younger man had become the Bat's only real weakness. It wasn't that he wanted to hit his other team mates, or enjoyed it (except for Arthur, the bastard), but he could rarely allow himself to lay a hit on Barry that was harder than a nudge. He watched from the sidelines as Barry and Clark raced against each other, the speedster leaving a metallic taste in the air as he attempted to bring down the Kryptonian. 

Diana stood beside Bruce, an amused look on her face as she heard Barry babbling as he fought. Barry tended to speak, well, at all times.   
"He's not going to be good in stealth." Though her words were slightly harsh, the smile in her voice was prevalent. 

"I thought we'd established that with the bright red suit and the lighting." He watched as Barry was thrown down, a wheeze escaping his chest. Clark stood over him, holding out a hand to help him up. Barry didn't reach for it, instead letting a long whine fill the room. 

Bruce was at his side in seconds, hands holding his face. Clark stepped back, letting them have their space.

"What's wrong, B?" Bruce let his hands run down Barry's body, glad that he wasn't fully suited up, so any injuries would be easier to treat. Barry's shaky hand grabbed his side, holding tightly onto his ribs. He let out another wheeze, and Bruce's blood went cold. 

"Arthur, get Alfred. Victor, can you scan him for fractured or broken bones?" Bruce shifted beside his partner, letting the speedster lean his weight onto him. Victor stepped forward, glancing over Barry's body.

"Two ribs broken. Looks like the thee above it are fractured, but... older. With Barry's healing, probably a few days old." Barry curled more into Bruce, who felt his heart drop. Barry had been hurting for days, and he hadn't noticed. The speedster had been slow yesterday, the two of them having a lazy day at the Manor, watching the ducks by the pond and having Alfred teach them to bake. He was slow, but he didn't seem hurt or fragile. 

.

Within an hour, Alfred had him laying on a pseudo-medical bed, his chest wrapped up and pain medication working through his system. Bruce sat beside the bed, watching the slow breathing of his partner as he napped. Diana had tried to make Bruce train with him, but he had refused, wanting to make sure Barry was okay, as well as address the fractured ribs. Barry stirred on the bed, a hand moving the sweat-coated dark hair off of his forehead. Bruce leaned forward, placing his palm over Barry's knee. The younger man smiled at him.

"Good morning. Where'm I?" Barry stretched his spine out, a spine emanating from his throat as he held his side. Bruce wanted to reach out, hold him, comfort him, but he wanted answers first.

"You're in the medical bay. Clark broke some ribs. Two. But you were already healing from something else. What was that?" His voice didn't waver, and Barry shrunk back as though he was a child being scolded. Sometimes, the age difference between the two of them seemed to make Barry feel inferior, which Bruce never wanted. 

"Oh... yeah, uh, I fell a couple days ago in the lab and hit my side on one of the desks. It's healed quickly though! No harm, no foul!" Barry swung his legs off the bed, sitting up to face Bruce. 

"That's not no harm, no foul. That could have been a serious injury, you could have punctured a lung." Bruce leaned forward to gently hold Barry's face. "Take better care of yourself."

"See, the thing is I can't. I couldn't really take time off if it was bad, I can't afford to lose a day's worth of money from both jobs, and I'm still new to the lab, and I don't wanna be fired." Barry's hands moved as he spoke, gesturing wildly. Bruce didn't understand how Barry could care so little about his health compared to his job. The crime lab meant a lot to him, he knew that, but... he was hurt.

"And no one called an ambulance?" 

"Uh... I, uh, I asked them not too. I don't have insurance." Bruce blinked. This man was a hero without health insurance. Brace pulled at Barry's ears gently.

"Okay, I'll change that."

"You don't have to!" Barry's hands leapt to Bruce's chest, resting above his firm muscles. 

"I want to. Please, let me take care of you." 

-

Barry was young, and although he was an incredibly smart man, he was also a total idiot sometimes. Bruce had taken care of his insurance, sure that it was the man just being a bit daft and forgoing the coverage for other daily needs and wants. Barry had slowly begun integrating into his house more and more, and Bruce absolutely didn't mind. A drawer was stuffed with Barry's clothes, worn flannels and graphic tee-shirts rumpled. Alfred had begun to buy snacks that Barry preferred, and Bruce had left his habit of sleeping in the middle of the bed to let Barry have a side. 

He didn't stay over every night. Often times, Barry's crime lab job and his job at the record shop only left a few hours in between, and Bruce could never blame the speedster for needing some personal time for sleep or food, even just a quiet night at home where he didn't have to worry about his partner going after hardened criminals. But lately, Barry seemed tired. He lacked energy, opting out of training to instead take naps or to ask Alfred cook for him. 

It was a night that Barry was sleeping at the Manor that Bruce felt his world crash down around him. The plush bed stretched for miles under them, and Barry had been running his hands over Bruce's bare chest, mumbling under his breath. It had been a quiet day, the two had gone to see a play that one of Bruce's business partner's daughters was in, and they had dinner at an Outback Steakhouse, Barry not wanting to deal with the tiny portions of a fancy restaurant. 

Barry had dragged him to bed after, and Bruce had really expected something, but all he got was an armful of sleepy speedster, which he would never complain about. He listened as Barry murmured, only catching bits of the younger man's rant about work. Bruce made himself busy by stroking the speedster's arm.

"So... this Karen... talk to... I am..." Half of Barry's words were nonsense, and Bruce smiled into the boy's dark hair. He let his arm slip onto Barry's side, and his hand froze as he felt ribs like a xylophone under his fingers. Barry had ceased speaking as well, the two men in a silent showdown as Bruce's hand kept exploring the younger's stomach.

"Barry."  
"Bruce." Barry sat up, pulling a wad of blankets with him to cover his body. Bruce leaned over to the side table and flicked the automatic lights on, the room slowly getting brighter. The first thing he noticed wasn't the frailness of Barry's shoulders, nor the way his cheeks seemed to sink in more than usual, but instead he noticed the fear in his eyes, already brimming with unshed tears. 

"Baby, please let me see what's wrong. What happened?" Bruce didn't dare move, not wanting to startle the boy and have him run into the night. Barry let a long sigh escape his mouth, and he hung his head. 

"See, the thing is I got locked out of the warehouse where I was living and the cost of living in Central City is so much but I have to pay now and food is expensive too and-"

"Barry, are you eating?" Bruce leaned forward, and Barry shook his head.

"Not enough. Not well, I'm sorry! It's just-"

"I don't want to hear it." Bruce pulled Barry close against his chest, feeling the rapid breathing of the thin man

"Barry, you need to eat. You need to eat _a lot_. You know you could have come to me." 

"I don't want to though. It's not your job to feed me and clothe me because I'm a big stupid baby that can't take care of myself."

"You're not stupid. And it's my job. It's my job because I love you." Barry shook his head in the crook of Bruce's neck, but didn't say much more.

-

The league never said anything when they noticed that Barry had taken up permanent residence in the Manor. They never mentioned it when they found his wrappers laying around, or were subjected to listening to K-Pop. They knew his life was hard, and they loved him for it. 

**Author's Note:**

> thanks for reading! comments and kudos are greatly appreciated!  
> I take requests! You can head over to my tumblr, @sapphicteatime, and leave a request there!


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